Bio

The Artist

Paul Janis was born in New York City in 1915, the oldest child of Demetrios and Vasiliki Giannacopoulos, who immigrated from Greece at the turn of the century. Demetrios was a Greek Orthodox priest and moved from parish to parish, taking his growing family with him. While living in New Jersey, Paul's natural artistic talent came to the attention of the local historical society, and the 14-year-old bootblack was commissioned to copy a painting of New Jersey's favorite son, Senator Hobart. That painting is still in the possession of the Passaic County Historical Society.

During the course of Paul's 85 years of life, he painted for the sheer love of art. His representational paintings are flawless, but his real self-expression came from his abstract paintings. Bold colors and subtle shadings give depth to the visions he put on canvas. He was constantly experimenting with new textures and methods of expressing his soul through his paintings.

Through digitization, it is now possible to purchase a reproduction of many of Paul Janis' oil paintings.